152 Reducing the bioavailability of a mix of mycotoxins in broiler chickens with a clay- and algae-based decontaminant

Abstract Poultry feed is often contaminated with several mycotoxins that can impair animal health and performance, even at levels below the official guidance. The incorporation of mycotoxin decontaminants in the feed can limit these adverse effects. It is necessary to test the efficacy of these supplementations in vivo, but this requires specific experimental setups. The objective of this study was to test, in a validated toxicokinetic model, the ability of an algae-clay-based decontaminant to reduce the exposure of broilers to mycotoxin polycontamination (aflatoxin B1 – AFB1, ochratoxin A – OTA and deoxynivalenol, DON). The study included 16 male broiler chickens (Ross 308) of approximately 1.6 kg body weight (BW). After an acclimatization period of 1 wk, the broiler chickens were fasted for 12 h and then administered a single oral bolus with either the mycotoxins (n = 8) or the mycotoxins in combination with the decontaminant (n = 8; 2.0 mg AFB1/kg BW, 0.5 mg DON/kg BW, 0.25 mg OTA/kg BW, 2.5 g decontaminant/kg feed), administered in a parallel study design. Blood samples of the 16 broiler chickens were taken at different time points between 0 h (before administration) and 24 h (post administration; p.a.). The analysis of deoxynivalenol-3-sulphate (DON-3S, DON main metabolite), OTA and AFB1 in plasma was performed using UHPLC-MS/MS. The following parameters were calculated: area under the curve from time zero to the last point above the LOQ (AUC0→t), maximal plasma concentration (Cmax) and time at maximal plasma concentration (Tmax). Results showed that, using the oral bolus model, the mycotoxin decontaminant significantly altered the AUC0- >12h of DON-3S in broiler chicken (P = 0.012). The relative oral bioavailability [(average AUC0- >t mycotoxin + decontaminant/ average AUC0- >t mycotoxin) * 100] of DON-3S when administered with the decontaminant was 60.1%. For OTA, the decontaminant decreased the absorption of OTA as indicated by a significantly decreased AUC0- >24h (P < 0.001). Consequently, the relative oral bioavailability of OTA when administered with the decontaminant was lowered as well, namely 55.7%. For AFB1, the decontaminant affected the absorption of AFB1 with a significantly decreased AUC0- >8h (P < 0.001), Cmax (P < 0.001) and a significantly delayed Tmax (P = 0.025). Consequently, the relative oral bioavailability of AFB1 when administered with the decontaminant was 35.9%. Therefore, it can be concluded that the tested algae-clay based mycotoxin decontaminant reduces the oral absorption of multiple mycotoxins orally administered to broiler chickens in a single oral bolus model. These results are consistent with results obtained with DON in different experimental models (in vitro dynamics and in vivo performance) and confirm the efficacy of the decontaminant tested to control this mycotoxin in poultry production.